Advice Needed About gettin RN>BSN and Online Classes!! Good Idea or No?? HELP! ;)

[HunnyBee27]

Hi! Im currently working on my pre-reqs for nursing school at a two-year college and planning on transferring to a four-year college for nursing school, so that I can graduate and become an RN with a bachelor's degree. My issue is, i am not currently working, so im thinking about applying for the associates degree nursing program at my school, becoming an RN after two yrs, and THEN attending the University for my Bachelor's Degree....That way i will be working and making money, especially in the event that I have to pay for school, and I also have children to take care of. Now my dilemma is that all of the RN>BSN programs in my area that i have read about are ONLINE....so...with that being said, my question is this: Has anyone bridged over to a BSN from an associate's degree and taken online classes? I have never taken online classes but ive heard they are harder...so are they in your opinion? Im pretty sure they are more convenient to take while you are working though...I'd greatly appreciate ANY info on this topic!! Im trying to get the pros and cons so that I can decide what i want to do! Thanks so much for your time!

[kaydensmom01]

I graduated in May from ADN, and am now doing co-req's for the RN-BSN and will actually start the nursing classes in January. It three semesters of nursing classes. I am glad that I did it this way, but it is not for everyone. The online classes are harder in my opinion because you don't have lectures to help you pull the information together and they are VERY writing intensive. But you can work while doing them because you can do the classes anytime in your free time, so it works out perfectly for me.

[HouTx, BSN, MSN, EdD]

ADN--> BSN online is a very common educational route. I am not a fan of online either, so I can understand your misgivings.

Before committing to this route, you need to consider some scenarios

If you are in an area of the country in which hospital jobs are for BSN grads only... you will only be able to work in LTC or another non-acute care setting.

When you get your BSN, you may not be eligible for a hospital's "new grad entry" program (internship, residency, etc) because they are intended only for people without any clinical experience - BUT - at the same time, your non-acute "experience" does not make you eligible for a hospital job because they are only looking for people with acute care experience..... crazy-making, right?

You may lose eligibility for Federal/State subsidies because you: a) have accumulated too many credits as part of your ADN or b) already have a degree.. so you will have no choice but to take out private loans.

Yeah, I know.... it shouldn't be so hard. Just wanted to make sure you were fully informed.